New York-based startup Synchron has developed a pioneering technology enabling paralyzed patients to complete simple tasks on a computer thanks to a brain implant that detects neural activity. Rodney Gorham, a Melbourne resident living with ALS, has been integral to the trail. Gorham is now able to pinpoint letters on a screen using his eyes and can “click” on words with his mind. Synchron hopes to get approval next year from health authorities to market a final version of the device.
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01:18 Do you have any regrets about using the stamp rod or...
01:26 if anyone was in your same situation today, would you tell them to do the same thing?
01:31 Excellent.
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01:42 It sits on the surface of the brain and it listens to what's happening in the brain
01:50 around the area of the brain called the motor cortex that controls the movement of your arms and legs.
01:55 And then predicts what you're trying to move and it converts that into a signal that goes out of the body to control a personal device.
02:03 Brain, device, blood vessel.
02:08 We see no adverse events, but in addition to that we've been really fortunate to see that
02:23 the majority of people who have been implanted so far can use the technology readily.
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